Who is at fault in a 2008 fatal wreck in which a driver collided with a Bethlehem firetruck?

The Bethlehem fire truck was rushing to an emergency call, its lights flashing and its sirens howling as it headed down Eighth Avenue.

To avoid traffic at a red light, the firefighter driving the engine, Frank Dashner IV, cut onto the oncoming lanes of travel, heading against traffic to get to an alarm at Service Electric Cable TV.

Cars pulled over to allow the 35,000-pound, 52-foot-long firetruck to get by. All except the sports car of 60-year-old William R. Samer, who, passing other vehicles, lost control and crashed into the ladder truck. Samer died of his injuries eight days later.

Jurors must decide who was at fault in that 2008 wreck.

Was it caused by the negligence of Dashner, who crossed the divided road and drove against traffic?

Or was Samer to blame for his failure to yield to an emergency vehicle — as others did that day?

Those are questions that a Northampton County civil jury will have to decide in a wrongful death trial that began Monday before Judge Emil Giordano at the courthouse in Easton. Samer's widow, Judith G. Samer, is seeking damages from Dashner and the city of Bethlehem, arguing he was reckless and violated public safety policy while responding Oct. 24, 2008, to what proved to be a false alarm.

"This case is about the rules and regulations of how fire truck operators are supposed to comport themselves as they are driving among us, the public," Daniel Munley, the attorney for Samer's estate, told jurors.

"It is not full speed ahead, damn the torpedoes, we've got to get there," Munley said, citing the fire department's own rules, which say that driving against traffic should be done with extreme caution and "shall be avoided when possible."

Robert Hanna Jr., a lawyer for the city, countered that Dashner was driving safely and cautiously when Samer lost control of his car for an unknown reason. Samer had responsibilities of his own, Hanna said, with drivers required by law to yield to emergency vehicles.

"Mr. Samer didn't comply with that statute," Hanna said. "He didn't stop. He didn't pull over. He didn't wait. If he had stopped, if he had pulled over, if he had let the vehicle pass, we wouldn't be here today."

In 2009, Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin ruled that Dashner, a veteran firefighter, would not face criminal charges. Police said Samer drove nearly a half-mile with the fire engine in sight, and hit it as it was at a stop or going slower than 5 mph.

Samer, who lived in Hanover Township, Northampton County, died of multiple traumatic injuries. The lawsuit was filed in 2010.